To Tell the Truth
by LanieSullivan
Summary: Another answer to the challenge posted by Whitefeather1965, CHALLENGE: Two characters are having a serious discussion that turns into an argument. One character leaves in an all out huff. 2500 word limit. Extended tag to Stemwinder, Part 2. Dotty has questions. Will Amanda give her answers?


Disclaimer: "Scarecrow and Mrs. King" is copyrighted to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. The plot is mine, but not the characters. This story is meant for enjoyment purposes only. No infringement is intended.

Author's Note: I owe a great big thanks to my beta, Sheila, not only for her beta work on this one, but also because a conversation we had is what inspired this idea to begin with. Sheila, you rock!

Dotty wondering what was taking her daughter so long to chase one tiny, yappy dog out of their yard, stepped out the back door to see what was going on. She heard her daughter laughing with someone else, then heard a husky male voice say, _"_ You're working on it, huh _?"_ She peered cautiously around the corner, wanting to know who she was with, but not wanting to be caught spying on her. She saw her in the arms of a tall, very handsome man.

 _Is this Mr. Stetson?_ She thought. "

You know you don't have to work on anything," the man in her daughter's arms continued. _"_ You've got me _."_

Dotty watched as he tightened his grip on her, leaned in and kissed her softly.

"Do I?" Amanda queried with a mischievous grin once their kiss had ended.

"I meant it when I told you that I love you. That hasn't changed just because we're home and safe now."

"Good, because I meant it too," Amanda replied. "I love you, Lee, but I should...you know..." Amanda nodded with her head in the direction of the back door.

 _So, this_ _ **is**_ _Mr. Stetson_ , Dotty thought as she silently crept back into the house to avoid being caught. _And Amanda loves him._ It was just a pity that it was so dark that she couldn't get a really good look at him. She returned to her sinkful of dishes, not being nearly as careful with them as she'd been a few moments before, the ire she'd felt earlier in her rant about Mr. Melrose now multiplied and including her daughter for keeping something so huge from her. From the interaction she'd just witnessed it was clear that Amanda has fallen in love again, but why would she feel the need to be so secretive about it?

She was startled out of her thoughts by the slamming of the back door and glanced the direction of the breakfast nook where Amanda had resumed her task of clearing the table. She wordlessly approached her and said, "Leave those for now."

"Mother, we need to get these cleaned up before the food sets in," Amanda protested.

Dotty shook her head and pulled out one of the chairs. "Later. Sit down. I think it's time that you and I had a serious talk...don't you?"

"Okay-ay," Amanda replied hesitantly as she sat while her mother began to pace in front of her. "About what?"

"Well, how about we start with you giving me a real explanation of what this whole mess was all about?"

"Mother, I really can't tell-"

"Okay, okay...secrets. Not at liberty...blah, blah, blah...just like that Mr. Melrose said. So, then answer this question. Why did you run off with that man? That Mr. Simpson...Steadman...Stetson...or whatever his name is this week."

"Mother..."

"Don't "Mother" me," Dotty scolded her. "I asked you a straight question and I insist that, for once, you give me a straight answer. Ever since you began working for that blasted film company, it has been one tall tale after another and I'm getting rather tired of it."

"I already explained to you that he was in trouble-"

"Yes, you did," her mother interrupted as she paused in her pacing and stared down at her daughter. "So that explains him running off, but that doesn't explain you going with him. Were you in trouble too?"

Amanda sighed. "He was in trouble and he needed me-"

"Your family needed you too," Dotty fired back getting angrier by the minute at her daughter's evasiveness. "My God, Amanda, do you have any idea what they put us through while you were gone? How terrified I was...how terrified Phillip and Jamie were? Did you even once stop to think about how this might affect them before you just took off?"

Amanda rose from her seat angrily and countered, "Yes, Mother, I did. I knew exactly what would happen if I _didn't_ leave. Those agents would have arrested me and I'd have been locked away for who knows how long and not able to help you, the boys or Lee. Leaving with him was the only choice I had because as long as I was free, I could help him find evidence to clear our names so I could come back home to you and to my children again! You have no idea how much it broke my heart to have to do what I did and to be away from all of you with no real way to communicate. to let you know I was okay, that I missed you, that I was looking out for your safety-"

"Oh, I'm sure it must have been just _terrible_ for you being shacked up with your new lover in whatever little secret getaway you were hiding in!" Dotty replied caustically.

"What? Th-that's not-"

"Meanwhile, your family is being interrogated and the house swarmed by federal agents night and day!"

"It wasn't like that! This wasn't some lovers' getaway! We were running for our lives!"

"Do you think I'm stupid, Amanda? I know you weren't outside just now chasing that stupid dog!"

"Mother, I-"

Dotty held up her hands to stop her. "Don't, Amanda! Do NOT lie to me again! I just saw you and your Mr. Stetson together outside."

"H-h-he's not _my_ Mr. Stetson," Amanda protested weakly.

"So, you weren't just kissing him? He didn't just tell you that he loves you? You didn't just tell him you loved him in return? Is that the real reason that you ran off with him? Is that the real reason you're always," she made air-quotes with her fingers, "working late?"

"Mother..." Amanda cringed under her mother's penetrating stare. "I-I-I- don't know what-"

"I don't believe it! I just don't believe it! Even now when I caught you in a lie and the look on your face tells me that you know it, you still won't tell me the truth!" She whipped around, yanked her apron off, lobbed it at the kitchen island and stormed upstairs in a huff.

"Mother, wait!" Amanda called after her, but was met only with the startling sound of the mother's bedroom door slamming shut. Letting out a deep sigh, she shook her head. She knew her mother well enough to know that she wouldn't be able to get through to her until she'd given her some space to cool down. Needing to cool off a bit herself. she picked up her the discarded apron, tied it around her own waist and resumed the task of cleaning up the kitchen, her thoughts in turmoil. How had everything become so complicated? Keeping secrets about the job had become second nature to her and that included lies she'd told in the past that involved Lee, but now...she had never counted on falling in love with him. She was so happy now that she knew that he loved her too and she would like nothing better than to share that happiness with her mother, but now the problem became how did she separate the lies she told about him from the lies she told about the job? Was it even possible since they were so entwined?

As she stewed and worked, she soon realized that there was no work left to be done and found herself re-wiping the same patch of countertop repeatedly. She launched the dishcloth in the general direction of the sink, trotted upstairs to make a quick check on the boys and their homework progress before she walked down the hall the other direction. She paused at her mother's door, took a deep breath to steel herself, then tapped lightly with a soft, "Mother?"

"Come in, Amanda," Dotty replied.

Amanda entered to find her mother propped on her bed and was just setting down a novel on her nightstand. "Reading anything good?" she asked as she closed the door behind her.

Dotty shrugged. "Just another one of those spy novels. You know, it occurs to me that what just happened is an awful lot like what I read in these."

"Well, I guess that makes sense since Lee and I were just accused of spying," Amanda responded.

"Have a seat." Dotty scooted over to make room for her daughter to sit with her and Amanda complied, sitting on the edge of the bed to face her mother. "So, it's Lee now? Not Mr. Stetson?"

"Yes, Mother, it is Lee...and has been for a while."

"I see..." Dotty nodded, thoughtful for a moment and then asked, "How long a while?"

Amanda smiled. "It's really hard to say-"

"No more lies, please..." her mother pleaded.

"I'm not...I promise. It just really is hard to pinpoint exactly when we really crossed the line from being friends to being more...when our casual after-work dinners started becoming dates..." She sighed again. "The thing is...I never told you about it because I wasn't sure how I felt about it myself. Lee...well, he is a man who is very difficult to get to know and to really know what he's thinking. He keeps a lot to himself...kind of like Jamie does. He only just told me that he loved me right before we took off together when he thought that we might never see each other again."

"And you love him too," Dotty replied matter-of-factly.

Amanda's smile brightened. "I do...very much. For all your hinting and pushing for me to find someone...Lee found me when I wasn't even looking."

"And he makes you happy?"

"Yes."

"Good." She replied with a firm nod as she hugged her. "That's all I ever wanted for you, My Darling Girl." As she pulled back, she then grinned broadly and inquired, "Now, what can you tell me about this Mr. Melrose?"


End file.
